We believe that Christian life is a joyful, communal experience, with continued growth leading to continued flourishing for us and the world around us.

As a church, we value community & spiritual formation and are committed to establishing practices that help us grow together into a flourishing life in Christ. As such, a variety of spiritual formation practices shape our life together.

COMMON WORSHIP

Worshipping together on Sundays is the crux of our life together. Each week, we gather to sing, pray, hear the Word, and share in communion. This prepares us to go out into the world to love and serve the Lord in the week to come. 

PORCH GROUPS

Porch Groups are the primary way to be involved at St. John’s outside of Sunday worship. Throughout the week, groups gather across the Delaware Valley to study the Bible, pray, and, often, share a meal or dessert. 

READING THE BIBLE TOGETHER

The main way God speaks to us is through his Word, so we study it together. As a church, we are committed to prayerfully and regularly reading the Bible with one another. If you would like to follow the readings of the church calendar, please find the daily office here. Each semester we have new bible studies covering specific books of the bible as well!

SUNDAY ADULT CHRISTIAN EDUCATION

We do offer Christian Education to our Adults on every Sunday. All classes start after the 10am Worship Service. For details on dates and topics, click on the button at the bottom of this page.

PORCH GROUPS

Porch Groups are the primary way to be involved at St. John’s outside of Sunday worship. Throughout the week, groups gather across the Delaware Valley to study the Bible, pray, and, often, share a meal or dessert.

FOUNDATIONS/DISCIPLESHIP

An eloquent summary of our approach to spiritual formation:

“To be human is to be animated and oriented by some vision of the good life, some picture of what we think counts as ‘flourishing’. And we want that. We crave it. We desire it. This is why our most fundamental mode of orientation to the world is love… Now why is all of this important for our project of sketching an alternative model of the human person? Because if you are what you love and if love is a virtue, then love is a habit. This means that our most fundamental orientation to the world - the longings and desires that orient us toward some version of the good life - is shaped and configured by imitation and practice. This has important implications for how we approach Christian formation and discipleship… In short, if you are what you love, and love is a habit, then discipleship is a re-habituation of your loves.” ~ James K.A. Smith, You Are What You Love

MORNING AND EVENING PRAYER

Each day is a new opportunity to present our cares before God and to hear from Him. We encourage everyone to find ways to incorporate prayer into their daily lives. In fact, we offer Morning Prayer on Monday-Friday at 7am on our YouTube Channel. Click on the Morning Prayer button below. If you would find a liturgy helpful in guiding your prayers, we recommend using the Book of Common Prayer, or this short liturgy that we use in our Porch Groups (LINK). 

SERVING OTHERS

Throughout Scripture, it is clear that the world flourishes most when the Gospel is faithfully lived out. At St. John’s, we believe that one of the most critical ways the Gospel can be lived out is through serving the world. This happens on Sundays, in our services, serving one another through various ministries. This happens in our Porch Groups, as groups unite around different visions to serve their neighborhoods. And this happens intentionally in our missional approach to a lived out faith: serving one global mission (Nicaragua), two regional missions (Logan Hope, and Access Services), and three local missions (Bethany Christian Services “Safe Families”, GROW ESL, and Southampton Farmers’ Market).

SABBATH

Each week, we pause to rest from our work and to remember that we are creatures in need of rest. We rest together in worship of our creator and savior, and go out to sabbath in what way feels most restful to us all, uniquely.

POTLUCK MEALS

On the first Sunday of every month we gather after 10am worship for a potluck meal. Each month we have a different theme, which keeps it interesting for everyone. This is a wonderful time of fellowship, and it’s a great way to meet and mingle especially if you are new to our Church. Everyone is welcome! Following are themes for upcoming months:

  • Dec 2024 - Eastern Europe: Poland, Ukraine, Romania, Estonia

  • Jan 2025 - Quiches & Other Egg Extravaganzas

  • Feb 2025 - Souper Sunday

  • Mar 2025 - Chili Cook Off

  • Apr 2025 - Pacific Rim: Philippines/Thailand/Japan

  • May 2025 - South American Specialties

  • Jun 2025 - Parish Picnic

RETREATS

We gather together once a year as a whole church to set aside time away from the bustle of life and to seek the Lord's presence in community. We rest together, learn together, and worship together. Additionally, different ministries (men's and women's ministry, Porch Groups, etc.) will gather together to do the same throughout the year.